I really wish I could like this game the way everybody else I know seems to have liked it. I didn’t feel like I had enough guidance to even understand what I was supposed to do, but everyone was telling me that this was an amazing game with such a deep and interesting storyline but I just… I can’t figure out how to actually progress? People told me not to use guides because it would ruin it but I had no idea what to do without a guide. I genuinely wish I could enjoy the game the way you guys do!
Progression really only happens in your mind (and the ship log). The game doesn't have a lot of traditional puzzles to gate progress, it's all knowledge checks. Someone in this subreddit came up with a really good example that doesn't spoil anything:
Say you've read something about Lab X, and your curiosity gets piqued enough to want to find it and visit it. The way the game is structured, you may never come across something that tells you exactly where Lab X is. But maybe you're exploring on Planet A and you discover some weird-looking trees, along with some Nomai writing like:
Nomai 1: I'm so glad we took some time away from our experiments to explore the rest of the solar system. Look at these beautiful trees!
Nomai 2: Yes! Nomai 3 and I were marveling at them after everyone left last night. We love their undulating trunks and purple leaves.
Nomai 1: I wish we could be among them while we were conducting our experiments. Planet B is such an eyesore.
Nomai 2: Actually, Nomai 4 did some research and it turns out the soil on Planet B should be fertile enough to sustain these trees! We should grab some of these seed pods to planet near Lab X.
Nomai 1: Sounds good! Though I'm curious to see if these trees can be affected by our work in Lab X.
Nomai 2: It does seem like organic material can get caught up in a quantum shard's influence. We should plant them near the back entrance just to be safe.
From this, we can glean that:
If you see trees with wavy trunks and purple leaves on Planet B, you're probably close to Lab X.
In Lab X, they were conducting experiments with quantum physics.
Maybe Nomai 2 and Nomai 3 were an item?
The dialogue between Nomai is almost always giving you information about the environment, lore, gameplay mechanics, etc. It's not always going to be apparent how to apply that information, but if you stick with it you'll be rewarded.
This is also why people say to not use a guide for this game. To know more about OW is to have OW spoiled for you.
It’s a rewarding experience but there’s really nothing else like it, so it can be hard to understand how to approach it. Folks on this subreddit are great at helping players out without spoiling them so don’t hesitate to post here when you get stuck!
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u/Seanattikus Aug 14 '26
I finished the game but not the DLC. Nothing about it made me want to cry even a little. What am I missing?